Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas" (which, when translated, is Peter). John 1:35-42
Let's face it. When it comes to witnessing, two things are true about us. The first is that we all desire to see our friends, relatives, and acquaintances come to know Jesus. The second is that we feel somewhat at a loss about doing anything in order to see that happen.
Without a doubt all of us have some difficulty in sharing our faith. It's not that we don't want to share our faith. It's not that we do not have concern over lost relatives and friends. In fact, we do care. Because we care, we feel a sense of guilt over not doing much to reach them. But the task at times seems to be too much for us. After all, don't you have to be quite a Bible scholar in order to lead people to Jesus?
In the Bible, we see many people sharing Jesus who were without formal theological training. In fact, the most effective witnesses were just barely saved themselves.In the passage above, Andrew reached his brother Peter for Jesus. But Andrew was just introduced to Jesus himself. By following his example, we find a practical method which shows us how to share our faith. It is a simple method, yet effective.
Seek Out…The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon…The first step Andrew took to lead his brother to Jesus was that he sought him out. We must take the same first step. If we are going to be effective in leading people to Jesus, we must first seek out unsaved people. Some things to consider are:
- Where are the lost people in your life? – What is your mission field? Andrew went right for the person closet to him that he knew needed Jesus too. Think of the people in your closest circles.
- What do you know about them? -It has been said that each of us has a circle of friends, relatives, and acquaintances which number about forty people with whom we have a certain rapport. These are people you know by name. These are not strangers. These are people you can seek out for Jesus.
- You need to care – a lot.- We must understand the gravity of their situation. We must understand that without Christ they are truly lost and under the condemnation of sin. They are condemned people. Without Christ there is no hope for them. That is why God commands us to go into all the world. That is why Jesus came. You need to have a fire in your soul to spread this message.
- What are you going to share?- Andrew not only sought his brother, he shared what he had found with him.Andrew shared his own experience of discovering the Messiah. We need to share our own experience of Christ with people. We are not talking about deep, complex, theological knowledge here. Most people are not interested in arguing about deep theological truths, and if they do want to argue, they are not wanting to receive anything. What we are talking about is simply sharing our own personal experience of how Christ has met our needs.
Seeking those who need to hear about Jesus is only the first step in sharing your story of what Christ has done for you. Tomorrow we will look at what Andrew did next after he found his brother. Think about the people in your life. They are all there for a reason, not by accident. Who needs Jesus? Who needs to hear your redemption story?
Scripture to Claim:
This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. John 17:3
Scripture to Claim:
